Planning Shopping Trips

I've never been much on planning a shopping trip or even making a shopping list. However, now that we are trying to live more frugally these two items seem pretty important in order to keep our budget with time and money in check. Each Sunday afternoon I take time to comb the ads in the Sunday paper and look for the best sales on items we need or use and then look for possible coupon matches.

Several key things I have learned during my frugal research:

1. If an item is B1G1 and you have a coupon, that is usually the best deal!
2. Don't buy things you normally wouldn't, even with a coupon, unless you can get it cheaper than the item/brand you would normally buy.
3. You can stack certain coupons at certain drugstores. (e.g. if a drug store has a coupon for an item and you have a manufacturer's coupon, most of the time you can use both coupons on the one item for a great deal.)
4. Always get an item, even if you don't use it, if you can get it free. If you can't use it and it was free, donate it to a local food shelter or charity.
5. Rebates are a great way to try new things for free. Just remember you do have to use a stamp and wait 4-6 weeks for a refund.
6. Never abuse coupons, including printables. Some stores will no longer accept printable coupons because of fraudulent use. (e.g. photocopying a coupon several times.)

I'm sure there are more great points out there and if you have one feel free to leave me a comment.

I have to admit, I have been solely focused on CVS as that seemed to be the easiest store for me to put together purchase scenarios and also the most convenient to me. However, this week I see a couple of things at Rite Aid that just may be worth the trip. Rite Aid has a promotion for Single Check Rebates that I plan to research today and maybe start using tomorrow!

Speaking of tomorrow I am taking my little sister for her first introduction to CVSing! I hope I do her proud.

I'm also hoping to post more about saving at the grocery stores soon. Can you tell I'm hoping to really vamp up this site soon with lots of great information! If you have a topic you would like to consider blogging about regarding being frugal, let me know!